A U.S. District Judge sentenced the ex-girlfriend of a convicted former Honolulu police officer to more than 27 months in jail on marijuana-related charges.
Chief U.S. District Judge Susan Oki Mollway sentenced Athena Sui Lee to 27 months in jail and three years of supervised release for conspiring to grow, possess and distribute marijuana. The Federal Bureau of Prisons will determine where she will serve her sentence.
Lee’s ex-boyfriend, former Honolulu Police Department officer Michael Steven Chu, is serving a seven-month sentence in Los Angeles for conspiring with Lee to cultivate and distribute marijuana. The former couple grew marijuana in her Kapiolani Boulevard condominium as well as in his Mililani home.
Chu had testified Lee was the main one behind the operation. He had told the court via teleconference that despite his objection, Lee continued the operation.
With money orders and a considerable amount of cash tied to Lee’s involvement in the shipping of marijuana to Hawaii from California, Mollway said Lee exercised considerable management over the operation. Mollway also took under consideration Lee’s marijuana use and involvement in the operation with her ex-boyfriend.
Lee’s attorney, William Harrison, requested a 15- to 16-month sentence because she has no criminal record and is a mother of two children, ages 13 and 7.
Mollway did not grant the request, saying Lee had shown "phenomenally bad judgment" by submitting false documents, and that she had a history of fabrications.
"She is more culpable of the obstruction of justice than Mr. Chu," said Mollway during sentencing. "The serious reprehensible activity is on Mrs. Lee’s part."
Citing Lee’s deceptions, Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas Muehleck requested the longer sentence.
Last October, when the court allowed her to travel to Las Vegas for employee training after she submitted a letter from her employer, Mont Blanc at Ala Moana, the court discovered she had been fired and the letter faked. Character letters she submitted to the court were also faked.
"The court should be concerned with that, " Muehleck said.
After the hearing, Harrison said he wasn’t surprised by the sentence and that Lee was manipulated by some of the men she was involved with and made some poor choices.
"And those poor choices came back to haunt her today given her sentence," he said.
